The management of adult obesity

Obesity is Canada's most prevalent metabolic disease: one-third of Canadians are obese. It is a major cause of type 2 diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidaemia, and atherosclerosis. The treatment of disease caused by obesity accounts for an estimated 2.4 percent of Canada's health care expenditures for all diseases (1.8 billion dollars in 1997). This article presents a treatment algorithm based on a number of international guidelines and aimed to help physicians play a more active role in the management of adult obesity. Two problems are briefly examined: pregnancy and stopping cigarettes smoking.